Alexander Ovechkin, along with Segei Gonchar, Evgeni Malkin and a few other Russian hockey players met in St. Peterburg, Russia and went through a physical fitness camp.SovSport (not translated) did an interview with them and I am going to highlight the Ovechkin conversation…
A big thanks to a new KK friend named Dmitry who translated the inteview.

Washington Forward Alex Ovechkin: We Live Here Like It’s a Pioneer Camp!
Ovechkin arrived in St Petersburg from Saransk, where he took part in the national “Shumbrat, Finno-Ugria” festival. Alex came to the gym fresh and upbeat even though he was coming straight from the airport.

Alex, what took you to Saransk?
I was invited to go there… My mom also came as did Alexei Nemov [Olympic champion - gymnastics]. We loved it! I gave a “master class” to kids, showed them a few hockey tricks. Two teams battled for a prize - my hockey stick. A new arena was built there, hockey is the republic [of Mordovia] is on the rise.

Do you follow the news from the NHL? Your friend Dainius Zubrus signed a contract with New Jersey not long ago.
Yes, I spoke with Zubie three days ago. It’s a shame that he was traded from Washington. But at the end of the day, Dainius got what he wanted. I am very happy for him.

Hockey Night in Canada is in the midst of a major shakeup.
Joel Darling, the show’s executive producer, is out after seven years on the job. He has been promoted to a new position at CBC Sports as the No. 2 executive to Scott Moore, the head of the department.
Sources say play-by-play veteran Bob Cole has agreed to a two-year “transitional contract” in which his workload in 2007-08 will be slightly reduced, with 2008-09 likely marking his final season.
Cole’s broadcast partner, Harry Neale, has been given a one-year deal also with a reduced workload.
In terms of content, the pregame show will be upgraded and the Hot Stove intermission segment revamped.

And there’s no doubt that the Boston brass is very high on their new forward.
“He is a left (wing and) center…and he actually projects, probably, (on the) top two lines,” said Chiarelli on a conference call. “He’s got very good puck possession (skills), has some offensive creativity (and is) heavy and strong on the puck.
“He’s still young, (with) an ‘85 (birth date), so he has got a lot of hockey ahead of him.”
The Bruins are now very deep at center, but Chiarelli feels that the young forward is a very useful piece to the Hub of Hockey.
“You can never have too many good centers, but he also plays the wing,” said Chiarelli. “And he’s got some considerable size and that was something that we’ve been looking for, too….”

read on plus Chiarelli believes traded goaltender Toivonen has some great potential…

When it comes to NHL season tickets, a few teams have a waiting list.
Behind the Jersey gives you the information and other sports are included too…

Minnesota Wild: Despite not having a successful playoff team, the Wild have a solid waiting list of over 7500 fans. One message board member said that he heard you have to wait 5-10 years for an upper bowl seat (lower bowl seats are easier to obtain). To get your name on the list, you must pay a one time deposit of $200 to keep your membership in the Minnesota Wild Warming House. You then must pay $100 yearly to keep your name on the list.

much, much more...
For Wings fans, it is my understanding the “waiting list” is at about 6000 names.

Stop the presses. Khan(!) and I agree, mostly, on the unlikely prospect that our Miracle of Czech Insanity can last an entire season mentally and physically healthy.

But, what are the odds that a guy who turns 43 in January can once again make it through the season healthy? It wouldn’t be such a bad thing if he missed some time in the regular season as long as he’s healthy in the playoffs. Once again, the Wings will do what they can to minimize the risk by not overworking him and not playing him on consecutive nights.

What are the odds? Slim.

In case you didn’t know, our Deep Digger Captain has been providing equally shallow “scouting reports” on the Wings for a few weeks now. Here are a few more of his efforts.

What re-ignited them was a report by TSN on July 1 suggesting the Calgary Flames might consider offering up Alex Tanguay to the Panthers for Jokinen.
Panthers GM Jacques Martin (who replaced Mike Keenan last year) and Flames GM Darryl Sutter both denied the report. Still, it was enough to spark internet chatter claiming Jokinen was available, based on the Panthers supposed desire to dump his salary in hopes of landing good young players for their “rebuilding project”.
But the Panthers are no longer rebuilding. This is a team that has made continual improvement since the 2001-02 season, and came oh-so-close to making the 2007 Stanley Cup playoffs. Indeed, had former GM Keenan not traded away Luongo to Vancouver in one of the worst deals in NHL history (a move that likely led to Keenan’s firing), the Panthers probably would’ve made the postseason.

While three professional sports leagues sit embroiled in scandal, we hockey fans can sit back and laugh. Steroids? Nope. Point-shaving? Don’t think so. Dog fighting? We’re talking about Canadians, here. Sure, there aren’t many of us these days. But maybe these latest headlines will be enough to convert some disgruntled fans of the so-called big three. If not—who cares? We know why the NHL is the best professional sports league. Just in case, though, I thought I would take this time to review some of the reasons.

Minnesota Wild President and General Manager Doug Risebrough announced today that the National Hockey League (NHL) club has re-signed defenseman Nick Schultz to a 2007-08 contract.
“Nick’s continued improvement and durability make him the consummate team player,” Risebrough said. “He’s established himself as an important presence on our blue line, and we’re very happy that we could reach a contract agreement.”

St. Louis Blues President John Davidson announced today the team has acquired goaltender Hannu Toivonen from the Boston Bruins in exchange for Carl Soderberg.
“Hannu is a former 1st round draft choice who gives our club depth in the goaltending position,” said Davidson. “Our scouts feel he has tremendous upside and a bright future in the National Hockey League.”

I always read the comments posted underneath this blog, and a couple of you have brought up the Maple Leafs. I can understand why Toronto would not want Nashville moving to Hamilton.
Because the Predators would win the Stanley Cup first.
Think about it: Look what David Poile has done under a limited budget. Even in the great summer sell-off of 2007, you can’t help but look at that roster and say, “Geez, this guy does an unbelievable job of drafting and identifying talent.”
Now, imagine him working for Jim Balsillie, someone who will not be afraid to spend money, someone whose ego will demand an immediate contender.

About Kukla’s Korner

Kukla’s Korner is updated around the clock with the work of our own talented bloggers, plus links to the best hockey writing around the internet. We strive to bring you all the breaking hockey news as it happens.

The home page allows you to see the latest postings from every blog on the site. Subscribe here. For general inquiries and more, please contact us anytime.